Designs in processor architecture are accelerating at an extraordinary pace. According to "Moore's Law" computer technology can become outdated every 12 months. This is especially true in the area of processor design where users desire more powerful software applications, thus requiring more powerful processors.
One important factor in processor design is the "footprint" of the processor. The term "footprint" refers to how much space the processor requires to mount the processor to a printed circuit board, such as a mother board for a computer. The mother board typically holds the critical components of a computer, such as the processor, co-processors, high-speed memory, cache memory, and so forth. The larger the footprint of the processor, the less room there is for other critical components. This leads to either larger mother boards, which increases the overall size of a computer, or significant costs in reducing the size of each component placed on the mother board. The latter case would, of course, mean an increase in the overall cost of a computer. Therefore, efficient use of space on a mother board is an important design parameter in the construction of computers.
Earlier generations of processors were typically shaped in the form of a thin square, with pin connectors positioned on the edges of the square. The pin connectors were used to transfer electrical signals to and from the mother board and the processor. To operate, the pin connectors had to make contact with corresponding metallic leads on the mother board. Since the pins were positioned around the edges of the square processor, the processor had to be placed horizontally to the mother board to ensure proper contact between the pin connectors of the processor and the leads on the mother board.
The horizontal placement of the processor to the mother board was less than satisfactory for a number of reasons. For example, the horizontal placement of the processor required a relatively large footprint, thereby consuming space on the mother board. In addition, the horizontal placement made it difficult for a person to physically add or remove a processor to or from the mother board. Moreover, a new generation of processors requires large amounts of power to operate efficiently, and therefore requires relatively large heat sinks to keep the processor from over heating. The horizontal placement of the processing chip on the mother board made the addition of a heat sink cumbersome and less efficient.
In an attempt to solve the above-mentioned problems, a processor with an edge connector (e.g., a single edge connector cartridge (SECC) processor) was developed. SECC processors have the pin connectors mounted on only one side of a cartridge holding the processor. The SECC processor can thus be mounted with the larger area of the cartridge perpendicular or vertical to the mother board. By mounting the SECC processor vertically to the mother board, the SECC processor has a smaller footprint and makes room for additional components on the mother board. The vertical placement also allows the addition of a heat sink to the SECC processor. One example of an SECC processor having a heat sink is the Pentium.RTM. II processor made by Intel Corporation.
Although the SECC processor solved one set of problems, a new set of problems developed. For example, the SECC processor had a smaller footprint which meant precautions were necessary to prevent the SECC processor from becoming disconnected from the mother board. Disconnection could occur for any number of reasons, such as shock or vibration during transport. Moreover, the disconnect problem was augmented for SECC processors having external heat sinks mounted to the cartridge, such as the Pentium.RTM. II processor. The overall weight of the SECC processor can amount to approximately one pound with the addition of a heat sink. The weight of the SECC processor means that movement of the SECC processor could easily disconnect the SECC processor from the mother board, and in extreme situations, shatter the relatively fragile structure of the mother board.
In view of the foregoing, it can be appreciated that a substantial need exists for a structure to hold an edge connector processor to ensure that the processor remains stable.